Science Museums etc.

Do Science Museums / Natural History Museums cater to children too much?

  • Yes, definitely

    Votes: 1 100.0%
  • Only in some places

    Votes: 1 100.0%
  • No, there's lots for adults to see and do

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    1
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Melvil

Guest
We went along to the Glasgow Science Centre at the weekend, pretty much for the IMAX and the planetarium but thought we'd have a look around...well....the place would be great if you were, say, 10 or under...is it me or do science museums generally cater to children only these days?
 

snorri

Legendary Member
Wow! First time I have ever been in complete agreement with all the other voters.:sad:
OH:sad: There has only been one vote so far.;)
 

stevenb

New Member
Location
South Beds.
I think museums these days cater for the younger generation because they assume us Adults or elder people don't require educating. lol
 

Mr Phoebus

New Member
They have to gear a lot of it towards children to make the learning process fun.
I suppose school trips to such establishments wouldn't be fun it it all went over their heads.
Talking of Science Museums, I was lucky enough to be invited to look around the Museum warehouse a couple of months back.
This is where all the exhibits are stored, a lot of them have never been on display, also it's not open to the general public, but sometimes they open the doors once a year to them.
That final scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark where they're putting the Ark away, that's the first thing I thought of when entering there, it's absolutely huge.
I spent ages looking at the bikes, dozens of them were on top of the racking, so I couldn't get close to them.
But, there were loads I could get close to, here's a few....

aPicture013.jpg


Check out that twine chain. ;)

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Prototype Ksyiriums.
 

redfox

New Member
Location
Bourne End, UK
Maybe the science museum does a bit, but its still fun for adults.

Anything that gets my kids away from their computer games is a good thing and the Science Museum does that by the bucket-full. (albeit by offering them computer games in some instances ;))
 
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Melvil

Guest
Keith Oates said:
I think that both children and adults can look and enjoy although some exhibits will please one age group more that another!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Careful, Keith, don't be too controversial!!!!!!!!!
 
I thoroughly enjoy playing with the kid's exhibits!

Personally I think it is a one shot game. You can drag a kid into a museum, it is up to the museum to make then want to return.

If you get them thinking and enjoying science, we may reverse the decline towards "soft" subjects like media studies.
 
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Melvil

Guest
Oh, one more downside of 'kiddie' museums...I seem to have picked up a bug and since I went to the museum on saturday there's a good chance I got it there - all those 'touchy' exhibits that have had the unwashed hands of a couple of hundred disease breeders / children all over them...
 

Arch

Married to Night Train
Location
Salford, UK
I know what you mean Melvil, I think it's partly dependent on the adult - if you are the sort who is happy to act like a kid a bit, I expect you get plenty out of it. But it's annoying if things are over simplified, or dumbed down. It ought to be possible, with a little thought, to make exhibits both interesting and challenging to adults, and fun for kids. But I think too many people aren't prepared to read an information card, either for themselves, or to the kids, so they just wander round in a daze staring at things, while the kids press the buttons and stuff, without really knowing why.

In fact I've often thought of opening a visitor centre type attraction. There would be loads of buttons and lever and things, that lit up lights or sounded buzzers or whatever. They wouldn't actually MEAN anything or teach anything, but that's ok, it would be 'interactive', and that seems to be the important thing.... In fact only about half of them would have to work at any one time, the kids still smack the hell out of them anyway. As long as it had a big car park, and a themed burger bar, the great British public would flock in...
 
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Melvil

Guest
Arch said:
I know what you mean Melvil, I think it's partly dependent on the adult - if you are the sort who is happy to act like a kid a bit, I expect you get plenty out of it. But it's annoying if things are over simplified, or dumbed down. It ought to be possible, with a little thought, to make exhibits both interesting and challenging to adults, and fun for kids. But I think too many people aren't prepared to read an information card, either for themselves, or to the kids, so they just wander round in a daze staring at things, while the kids press the buttons and stuff, without really knowing why.

In fact I've often thought of opening a visitor centre type attraction. There would be loads of buttons and lever and things, that lit up lights or sounded buzzers or whatever. They wouldn't actually MEAN anything or teach anything, but that's ok, it would be 'interactive', and that seems to be the important thing.... In fact only about half of them would have to work at any one time, the kids still smack the hell out of them anyway. As long as it had a big car park, and a themed burger bar, the great British public would flock in...

Well...exactly...many museums don't attempt to teach the underlying theories behind their exhibits...I guess I am a bit biased as I did life sciences at uni and was used to having to debate and/or prove most things I wrote about. I guess today's culture is all about reducing things to easily digestible chunks.
 
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